It looks like he'd have been able to serve as Acting until mid-November, because the VRA adds another 90 days to the 210 days allowed for normal vacancies when a new president takes office.
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The White House announced that Jody Hunt, Sessions' chief of staff, was going to be the nominee to permanently run the Civil Division on Sept. 15.pic.twitter.com/pT1yrwjt3V
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People pick on me when I write "intend to nominate" when these announcements come out. WELL.
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It's been more than 80 days since then, and the White House has still not even sent Hunt's nomination to the Senate. Meaning, it's still going to be months — well into the new year — before we could get a permanent Civil Division chief.
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So, Jody Hunt — who was in a key Sessions-Comey meeting: http://www.newsweek.com/who-was-third-man-comeysessions-meeting-626094 … — is in limbo, and Chad Readler is still the senior person at the Civil Division right now, but not as the Acting AAG.
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After giving me nonresponsive answers since I raised this issue Friday morning, White House sends Jody Hunt's nomination to the Senate after 5p Monday, nearly 3 months after announcing the president's "intent" to nominate him to run DOJ's Civil Division.pic.twitter.com/yv0YSXqPLg
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In other news: Chad Readler is back to being Acting AAG at DOJ's Civil Division, in the wake of Jody Hunt's nomination for the post. https://www.justice.gov/civil/staff-profile/acting-assistant-attorney-general …pic.twitter.com/WRTZ3NI3Ki
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This is a weird function of everyone's favorite law — the Federal Vacancies Reform Act! Readler initially served as Acting AAG under 3346(a)(1) (with an add'l 90 days b/c of the presidential transition). Now, he's serving under 3346(a)(2).pic.twitter.com/t4mmoDIceW
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Lest one think serving under (a)(1) and then under (a)(2) would undermine the purpose of the limitations — as I thought might be the case — this scenario was raised in a 1999 OLC opinion, giving DOJ's view that it's allowed. https://www.justice.gov/file/19551/download …pic.twitter.com/EsJw2TDxAV
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Pointing to that opinion, a DOJ spokesperson today tells me that OLC opinion "says the nomination revives the ability to have an acting officer even if the time limit had expired before the nomination." ... Hence, Readler is back as Acting AAG.
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Readler is now able to serve as Acting AAG until Hunt's nomination is confirmed or for up to 210 days after the nomination is rejected, withdrawn, or returned to the president.
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